Southern California -- this just in

Woman who pushed trash can containing body parts may have buried some in backyard, police say

May 31, 2011 | 10:47
am

Body parts of a dismembered man found in a trash can being pushed along an Ontario street by a San Bernardino woman may have been buried in the nearby backyard of a relative, authorities said.

Carmen Montenegro was booked on suspicion of murder after Ontario residents in the 700 block of Holmes Avenue spotted her about 3 p.m. Sunday pushing a foul-smelling trash bin and alerted police, Ontario Police Det. Jeff Crittenden said. Body parts were found inside the bin, he said. Detectives on Tuesday continue to search for remains saying that part of the man's body still needs to be recovered.

After Montenegro's arrest, detectives began an exhaustive search of the home and yard of a relative on the same street, Crittenden said. By Monday afternoon, work tents covered much of the backyard of the residence as investigators excavated some soil to check for other body parts or evidence, he said. Investigators believe there was attempt to bury the body in the backyard, he said.

Montenegro apparently was asking relatives who live on the street for help getting rid of the body and had also tried to leave it in front of a nearby home, he said.

"She was trying to dispose of a body," Crittenden said. The victim has not been identified.

Police detectives and San Bernardino County coroner's investigators are still trying to determine when, where and how the victim was killed, Crittenden said.

The daughter of a homeowner related to Montenegro told a KTLA-TV (Channel 5) reporter that the suspect was her cousin and that she came to the house Sunday with the body asking for help disposing of it. The woman said she did not know the victim's identity.